torischroeder9

In the imp: Sweet huckleberry, almost sugared -- like huckleberry syrup or candy. On my skin: Wet, I get mostly huckleberry with a burst of currant cutting the super sweetness. The effect is that it's more reminiscent of fresh, juicy berries than a prepared food. As it dries and develops on my skin, the currant very gradually increases in prominence until it's just a hair less potent than the huckleberry note. I never do detect neroli. It's a fun berry scent, though I'm not actually sure it's a "me" scent.

In the imp: Lime aftershave, tweed, and metal. On my skin: Wet, it's metal and aftershave first. I can still detect the lime and the tweed. On the immediate drydown, the throw is lime aftershave while the skin scent is almost all metal. As Watson develops on my skin, he becomes more and more gunmetal. After an hour, it's still all revolver. It's a very clean metal, as in the scent description of "well-cared for service revolver." There's nothing, say, of actual gunpowder about the scent. And the linen and lime are evident if I really stick my nose in my arm, but for normal sniffing distance, they're very faint and subtle.

In the imp: Myrrh, balsam, and herbs. On my skin: Wet, the myrrh is predominant though the herbs are still very noticeable. As it dries, the myrrh becomes even more dominant, controlling pretty much all of the scent's throw. The balsam is actually what's most detectable closest to my skin now. The embalming herbs haven't absented themselves entirely, but they're very much in the background, at least for the moment. Twenty minutes later, and the myrrh almost completely dominates with resinous sweetness. An hour after that, it's still all myrrh. I like myrrh, but I'm not sure I need a Myrrh SN perfume.

In the imp: I don't get linen at all, but light, breezy florals. Plumeria and something that has the character of (but not the scent of) lilac or wisteria. On my skin: Wet, it's the same plumeria note as in the vial. As it dries, it becomes even more strongly so. An hour later, and this is where the scent seems to stay on me. It's very pretty and delicate, but it doesn't seem crisp and doesn't evoke linen on me. Maybe it would smell different after a night of debauchery?

In the imp: Cherry blossom, orchid, metal, and ozone. On my skin: Wet, the cherry blossom and orchid are the most prominent. I also get a splash of the wet fruits. For the moment, at least, the metal and ozone notes disappear. As it dries down, the bamboo also becomes apparent, mixing with the florals. I think I also get a touch of the ozone at this point -- at least, there's a breathy, airy quality to the scent, so it's there in spirit. (Here's where I went and prepped meals for the work week and so did not keep track of incremental transformations -- sorry!) The final version has metal, creamy orchid, bamboo, and cherry blossom and/or fruits. It's a light, delicate, close-to-skin scent on me. However, the metal and bamboo both show up enough that I wouldn't categorize this as necessarily stereotypically feminine.

In the imp: Leaf lettuce, like the kind we used to plant in our flower beds when I was growing up. On my skin: Wet, it's still all lettuce. On the immediate drydown, the lettuce note fades a bit, and the bois de rose comes forward. As it warms and develops on me skin, orris and angel's trumpet gradually gain prominence, though the rosewood remains detectable as a base. The end result is actually a very delicate floral dancing atop bois de rose. It's very pretty but ultimately not what I'm looking for in a perfume.

Interestingly, I received two imps of this -- both from post-Lab sources on the same day. I thought it would be fun to review them together. Imp 1 is a medium yellow in color; its label looks to be the newer of the two, though I can't definitively attribute that to age and not storage/exposure conditions. Imp 2 is a dark gold, almost orange color. In the imp: Imp 1 smells prominently of pinot noir, with myrrh and sandalwood readily detectable. In Imp 2, the pinot noir is still the main player, but the attar of rose is much more present at the outset. They are both still recognizably the same perfume. On my skin: Wet, Imp 1 is pinot noir and sandalwood, with patchouli also making itself noticeable. Imp 2's wet stage is attar of rose and patchouli; the pinot noir isn't predominant at all. (Testing in separate elbow crooks, so the scents should not cross over each other.) On the initial drydown, Imp 1 becomes attar of rose and myrrh, with the pinot noir detectable but very much along the edges of the scent; it really is like the "ghost" of the scent. At the same stage, Imp 2 is almost entirely attar of rose on me (this is a fairly common occurrence for anything rose + me). At approximately thirty minutes after application, the scents from both imps are identical to my nose. The attar of rose is the dominant scent, softened by the mrryh and grounded by what I'm assuming is the sandalwood and the patchouli. I can't actually detect these last two scents, but I have a lot of other BPAL scents where one or both of them is working as a grounding scent, and the attar of rose is behaving as if one or both of them is present (I can smell the rose and only the rose, but it feels deeper, and it's not giving me a headache or going at all soapy). This is a seep, sophisticated, femme fatale rose on me. Rose scents aren't often my thing, but I may make an exception for this one. However, I do get lots of throw from this -- as I usually do from rose -- which may limit its appropriate wearing venues.

In the imp: Pine first with eucalyptus taking a moment to make itself known. However, once it does, eucalyptus is the stronger note. On my skin: Wet, it's eucalyptus with a slight undercurrent of pine, smelling, at this stage, more like Vicks Vaporub than anything. During the initial drydown, I can detect peeks of orange and pine, but Jabberwocky really remains all about the eucalyptus. After about a half an hour, the eucalyptus fades, and the pine takes its place as the most prominent scent; at this point, I cannot detect the orange. And pine with a hint of eucalyptus is where it stays on me. It reminds me of being deep in a forest; the touch of eucalyptus adds a bit of an ethereal vibe -- as if I know the forest is deep and dark and not quite natural. That said, it's not the kind of scent that I want as a perfume for me.

My imp label says "Val San Retour," but since that looks similar to a couple of other reviews, I think I'm in the right place. In the imp: Lemon Pledge and Pine Sol had a baby, and it's in this wee vial. On my skin: Wet, the evergreen is the most prominent. As it dries, the evergreen disappears almost entirely, and I'm left with sugared lemon. Given some time to develop, the evergreen makes somewhat of a resurgence, this time as a supporting player. So it's sugared lemon against a pine backdrop. Not so much for me. Low throw.

In the imp: Herbal green and evergreen and berries. On my skin: Wet, the evergreen scent dominates, with the fruit or berry note rising to meet it. On the initial drydown, the fruits disappear, and there's the evergreen note along with a dark, slightly powdery musk. As it warms and develops on my skin, I get a spiciness that's akin to the one I get from The Strangler Fig. It's understated and not foody, but it's also pretty intriguing. This also happens to be Bohun Upas's final form on me. This is a close to skin scent on me. I'm not sure when I'll find the occasion to wear such a scent on a regular basis, but it's interesting enough that I'm at least going to have to try it one more time.

In the imp: Have you ever smelled ambrosia salad -- with canned fruit and whipped cream and mixed together? Have you ever had an ambrosia salad assault your nose? Because this is like that. On my skin: Wet, it's ambrosia salad, then strawberry bubble gum (the kind with the powder on it that keeps it from sticking to the wrapper), then coconut, then strawberry bubble gum. Given time to develop, more fruit notes emerge, to the point that I can't distinguish them all. I wouldn't be surprised if you told me this contained strawberry, cherry, orange, pineapple, peach, and banana -- with extra sugar on top. Runts! The candy, including a banana flavor. That's what this morphs into on me, like smelling their combined artificial flavorings all at once. I can imagine why this would be the manifestation of a joy blend, but it's too sweet on me to be a workable perfume choice.

Source: from direct from Lab In the imp: Kumquat with a hint of white tea. On my skin: Wet, kumquat is completely stealing the show. As it starts to dry, I get the barest hint of white pepper, just enough to detect an undercurrent of spicy underneath the kumquat's sweet. Once it develops, the white tea helps cut the kumquat's sweetness, giving a bit of an almost lemony note. Aaand... this is where it stays on me. Sweet and fruity and a little citrusy, it's definitely a fun interpretation of Tweeedledee. I think it would be pretty great as a soap or a shower gel, but as a perfume oil, the scent profile lacks depth on me.

In the imp: Mandarin with some higher notes (possibly florals and/or neroli) cutting the sweetness just a bit. On my skin: Wet, it's pure mandarin. As it dries, I get a tickle of something that is not mandarin (and not orange, I think) around the edges of the scent. I'm inclined to think it's one or more of the roses, but at this stage, it's vague enough that I could well be wrong. Approximately thirty minutes after application, something emerges with a faintly soapy note, which might be one of the roses here. The soapy stage doesn't last long, however, and we're back to a predominantly sweet orange perfume that might be helped along by some of the floral notes. After about an hour, I can detect both the rose -- now becoming prominent -- and the myrrh -- as a base note -- distinctly, though the orange notes are also still present. Edit: The next morning, it's still detectable on my skin, now as a lovely three dimensional rose. The rose note is front and center, accented by the citrus, which makes it smell fresh, and grounded by the musk and myrrh. I'm not often a rose person, but this is particularly lovely -- and the orange phase the scent goes through to get there is lovely as well.

Purchased as part of an imp lot on eBay. Appears to be an older standard-issue Lab imp with font, older logo, etc. In the imp: Smooth, smoky patchouli. On my skin: Wet, it's patchouli that's mellowed out of all its gnarl and bite, along with a gentle undercurrent of smoke -- the smoke of a few candles in a large room, not overwhelming. As it dries, the smokiness either dissipates or is reabsorbed into the patchouli. If there is a way to describe patchouli as "silky smooth," this is it. There's also now a light sweetness around the edges of the scent that's currently too soft for me to distinguish but that could well be a floral. ... and that's about all this does on me. I can't tell if the patchouli-dominance is patchouli dominating on me (common), me not being able to pick out the notes that are softening it, the aging process (this could be, like, 13-year-aged patchouli in a vial, no?), or some combination of the above. I probably won't keep this forever (if I wanted Patchouli SN, I could get straight patchouli oil), but I'm surprised at how nice this is, and I'm definitely curious enough to try it again. Throw on me is medium, which is common for me + patchouli. Edit: The next morning, this scent is still present on my skin. Now it's patchouli with a definite touch of a warm sweetness, like a honey or an amber. (Given that I didn't perceive it last night but do perceive it now, amber would be the more logical conclusion of the two choices -- though it could well be something else.)

In the imp: Florals -- lily or lilac or hyacinth. On my skin: Wet, a note like lily is predominant. Given some time to dry, and I think I smell something spicy grounding the lily. I could believe dragon's blood, ginger, or cinnamon. I don't think it's clove or pepper (black or pink) as those tend to be distinct on my skin. After some time, maybe thirty minutes or so, the skin scent seems to be more of the spice (ginger?) and maybe dragon's blood, though the throw still seems to be mostly lily. Oh, wait -- false alarm. At the forty-five minute mark, it's back to being predominantly lily near and far. And perhaps I've just spent one too many Easter mornings in a church crammed with lily smell, but this is not the scent that sparks carnal desire in me.

In the imp: Something floral, something citrus, something green and herbal. On my skin: Wet, it smells like bitter orange peel. Once dry, the bitter orange peel fades, and rose becomes the dominant note. I can't say that the orange peel is gone entirely, but rose is a pretty insistent note on me. As it develops, I get a bit of powdery resin, which on me could be frankincense or myrrh. The end effect is that of a powdery tea rose.

In the imp: Dragon's blood with a woody undercurrent. On my skin: Wet, the dragon's blood rises to the top of this blend. As it dries, the sandalwood becomes apparent close to the skin though the throw is all dragon's blood. After about half an hour on my skin, it really doesn't morph. It's sort of strange on me since it doesn't blend but rather seems two separate notes depending on where my nose is. This is probably headed for my swaps.

In the imp: Almond, almond, SUPER ALMOND, and also cherry. On my skin: Wet, it's still SUPER ALMOND with a cherry afterthought. Once dry, the super almond and cherry both fade, and I'm left with something vaguely incensey. Given more time to develop, the incense note increases though I can't completely identify the specifics of it. Frankincense, maybe? I also smell rose starting to peek through. The rose increases and the incense factor decreases until it's very like the rose-infused amber in The Little Wooden Doll (with maybe a little less rose, a little more powder). And once rose gets its thorns into a scent, that scent is now in its final form on me. The last time I tried Black Phoenix had to have been circa 2006, and I remember it being all almond and cherry on me. Though I'm still not sure I love rose incense, this is a definite improvement. Going to keep this around for at least one more try.

In the imp: Thick, humid, and faintly sweet. On my skin: Wet, the humidity and faint sweetness continue. It reminds me of cantaloupe or honeydew, though it doesn't necessarily actually smell like that. As it dries, the sweetness fades, and the salty brine becomes the most prominent note -- though the faint sweetness lurks in the background, keeping the brine from being overpowering. Given time to develop on my skin, it's what I think of as quintessential aquatic. It's one of the first that doesn't go soapy or otherwise icky on me. It's the smell of being out on the ocean rather than standing on a beach or other shore. It's a nice aquatic though aquatics aren't generally my thing, and this one does develop into a scent I consider masculine on me. The throw is good, and while I'm likely to wash it off before I can test its true wear length, it's been on me long enough that I can stay it doesn't pull a fast vanishing act.

In the bottle: Icy, snowy evergreen and juniper. On my skin: Wet, it's ice and juniper grounded by pine and fir. The snow + juniper is almost minty in quality. As it dries, something sweet begins to creep out, but it's sufficiently overshadowed by the snow and juniper that I can't tell if it's fruit or floral. Once it's been on for about half an hour or so, the sweetness -- in which I'm fairly certain I can detect currant and unidentifiable florals -- becomes more prominent, though the chilly note remains more so. The currant gradually develops more strength, warming the scent profile. It's definitely a scent evocative of a sparse, chilly, snow-covered landscape with just a few hints of cold-hardy plantlife.

In the imp: Raisins with a little bit of... fizz? Sniffing again, I think that might be how I'm interpreting the rum portion of the note. On my skin: Rum raisin with something that smells like animal fat. As it dries, I'd call it more like a butter crust note. As it dries, spices -- the mince pie -- emerge. (I do not know what either plum pudding or frumenty smell like. I do not detect a plum-plum note.) Given about a half hour to develop on my skin, it's lovely spicy mince pie close to my skin with some throw that has definite rum raisin and perhaps hints of plum. Doesn't morph on me much after that. I'm very intrigued by this blend and want to test it further. My initial impression is that it's most suited to a cool- or cold-weather scent.

In the imp: Yuzu and kumquat predominantly. Some bitter citrus of grapefruit, some light floral. On my skin: Wet, it's first dominated by the yuzu, then the kumquat. The grapefruit and floral are detectable as gracing top notes, but they're not prominent. After about twenty minutes, the wisp of grapefruit dries and fades, leaving the yuzu, kumquat, and florals. It doesn't morph much after that on me. It's pretty, but I'm not sure it's a "me" kind of scent. There's a humid, almost swampy quality to the scent that seems out of place with the dry air of the desert. On me, the throw is on the stronger side of medium.

In the decant: Mead and fruit. On my skin: Wet, it's basic honey mead. As it dries, I can make out nutmeg, clove, cinnamon, and lemon. There's something very round and almost buttery about the quality of this scent. Given time to develop, however, the ginger and lemon start to become more and more noticeable in the blend. Neither of them dominates outright, but they both work to cut Mead Moon's sweetness. The end result is a perfume that's more like a ginger lemon tea with lots of honey stirred in than it is like a blend whose backbone is honey or mead. I like it a lot -- though I need to slather to enjoy -- but I can understand that it's not what some people might have in mind for a scent with this name.

In the decant: Mead, honey, and maple. I can't detect the pumpkin as an independent note. On my skin: Wet, the mead, sweet and slightly boozy, is prominent. As it dries, the pumpkin also becomes detectable, softening some of the mead and honey sweetness. It's roundly sweet and gently spicy, more like a pumpkin + pumpkin pie spice scent than a purely pumpkin one. After the initial drydown, the scent morphs very little on me. It stays pumpkin-dominant, sweetened by the honey and mead. If the maple is present at all, I only notice it as part of the sweetness. The scent as a whole is lovely -- sweet and rich without being cloying -- and my only complaint is that it has so little throw on me. But I'll happily use up this decant.

In the decant: The initial smell is green and herbal, reminding me most of the Lab's Belladonna. If I sniff again, there's something sticky and resiny around the edges of the scent. On my skin: The resin comes to the forefront of the scent, combining with the herbal smell to create something that almost smells like pine sap. As it dries, it becomes more resinous. I can pick out the frankincense, myrrh, and opoponax -- and I think the chamomile, though that's so much more a "thinner" scent that it's difficult to tell. It doesn't morph much after that. The end result is a very thick, syrupy resinous scent that actually doesn't have all that much throw on me. It's certainly nice for what it is. I'm just not sure if it's a "me" kind of thing.